KUALA LUMPUR: Successful professional shuttlers can be rest assured that they are not left alone to fend for themselves.
The Youth and Sports Ministry plans to hold a one-on-one meeting with several professional badminton players, including the newly crowned Indian Open champions Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani, as well as men’s singles player Lee Zii Jia.
The meeting will address the inclusion of Sze Fei and Izzuddin into the Road to Gold programme and also explore how it can better support professional players.
A time has not been set yet as the ministry is currently facing challenges in arranging a meeting with Sze Fei-Izzuddin due to their busy tournament schedule, while Zii Jia is still in recovery from an injury.
Sze Fei-Izzuddin will be incorporated into the RTG programme as they are currently the world No. 2 men’s doubles pair.
Zii Jia was previously offered a spot in the programme ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics but he declined.
“Zii Jia is not part of the RTG programme for Los Angeles 2028, but the current trend shows that many independent players are doing very well, such as Sze Fei-Izzuddin.
“We want to hear how we can support them. The meeting is to discuss potential collaboration with RTG and how we can serve as a support system for qualified independent players,” said Hannah after officiating the basketball court upgrade project at Taman Maluri, Kuala Lumpur, yesterday.
In addition, they are also planning to arrange a meeting with track cycling champion Datuk Azizulhasni Awang to discuss his status on whether he will continue cycling with the national team or retire.
At the same time, Hannah, who also serves as co-chair of RTG, said there would be some changes to firm up the programme but it will not affect the athletes.
Launched in 2023, the RTG aims to provide additional support to Malaysia’s elite athletes in their quest to secure the nation’s first Olympic gold medal.For the 2024 Paris Olympics, of the 26 Malaysians, 10 were part of the programme. They include Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah, Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei (badminton), Aniq Kasdan (weightlifting), Bertrand Rhodict (diving), and track cyclists Mohd Shah Firdaus Sahrom and Azizulhasni Awang.
“There will be changes, which will be announced in February. A new committee will be formed and we have also included new sports that are ranked in the top 10 in the world,” she added.
